US Navy Conducts Final Trials for First Littoral Combat Ship

The US Navy has recently conducted the second and final round of acceptance trials for the country's first littoral combat ship, USS Freedom (LCS 1), off the Virginia coast.

The trial, conducted in association with LCS 1 developer Lockheed Martin, included operational testing of the vessel's propulsion, communications, navigation and mission systems, as well as all related support systems.

The surface and air detect-to-engagement demonstrations of the 378ft vessel's combat management system were also tested successfully under four hours on a full power run.

The trial also included demonstration of major systems and features, including aviation support, small boat launch handling and recovery, and fin stabilisers.

The new ship design supports launch and recovery operations of manned and unmanned vehicles, the company says.

The highly automated and networked surface combatant vessel can reach speeds up to 40kt and can execute specific missions such as mine warfare, anti-submarine warfare and surface warfare. It can also be used for humanitarian causes.

The Freedom Class vessel features a secure, high-availability ship-wide network that can be controlled from a single workstation for specific missions.